The movie franchise Samuel L Jackson said has “the proportions of the Greek myths”
Throughout his career, he has established himself as one of the most recognisable actors in the world, and Samuel L Jackson has proven his ability to feature in a wide range of movie genres. Seemingly, there is no role that Jackson can’t play, although he has undoubtedly doused each of his efforts in his unique style.
Over the years, Jackson has given some of the most memorable acting turns in modern cinema. His early efforts included those in Coming to America, True Romance, Do the Right Thing and Menace II Society, while his later performances in the likes of Django Unchained, Coach Carter and Shaft also drew attention.
With those films in mind, it’s clear that Jackson has always preferred big-scale American movies to independent dramas. In fact, Jackson has never shied away from getting involved in movie franchises, playing Nick Fury in several MCU films and Mace Windu in the Star Wars prequel films.
Jackson had once spoken highly of the wider Star Wars franchise, which began way back in 1977. In an interview with the BBC, Jackson was asked whether he had seen all the Star Wars movies, and he responded, “Oh, yeah. Always. I think it’s a modern-day myth that’s been created in our lifetimes, that we’ve shared and enjoyed with George [Lucas] as he created it.”
“It’s taken on the proportions of the Greek myths that we had to learn when we were kids,” Jackson added. Indeed, there’s something special about Star Wars that seemed to captivate an audience in the same way that mythological stories had for ancient civilisations. The original trilogy introduced the world to the Jedi/Sith and Empire/Alliance battles and the Galaxy Far, Far Away.
In 1999, franchise creator George Lucas delivered Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace and completed the prequel movies over the next six years. Jackson played Jedi Mace Windu in the films, known as the strongest Jedi next to Yoda and for his ultra-cool and rare purple lightsaber.
Discussing how the figures behind the prequel movies had possessed hopes about continuing the mythic tradition of the original films, Jackson noted, “This is ours. Now, we’re watching the development of how it all started. We care about it and we want to know the information. And it’s been a great generational transition.”
In addition, Jackson felt that there’s something about Star Wars that can affect a person’s day when they are feeling down by introducing them to a universal story of galactic proportions. “The good thing about the Star Wars films to me is that if a person’s feeling bad – or even those people lined up waiting months for a ticket – if they can come out feeling better, then it’s all been better. That’s what movies are for. To make people feel better.”
Throughout his career, Jackson has been making movies that are some of the most entertaining works of cinema out there. When we really look into the medium of cinema, we can equate them to the great epic myths of yore, the stories of heroes and battles, and in such a light, it’s hard to look beyond the impact of Star Wars. Possessing such a brilliant cast, including Jackson, Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor, and Liam Neeson, even the sometimes maligned prequel movies contributed to the wider mythic qualities of the wider story.
